What Killed America Pt. 3 ( The Rebel Culture Of The Late 1950s.)

Television’s danger could be theorized, but only time could show its true effects Sadly, the evidence began appearing sooner rather than later as America entered the closing years of the 1950s.

However, to understand the rebellious culture that was developing, we must first understand the generation growing up around it.

The parents of the 1950s had been shaped by hardship. They survived the Great Depression, watched thousands of banks fail, struggled to find work, and endured years of poverty. Then came World War II, when millions sacrificed their comfort, careers, families, and even their lives to protect America.

Their children, however, were growing up in a much different nation.

The economy was booming. New homes were being built, luxury cars were in abundance, and businesses were expanding. Many baby boomers had more ease, more spending money, and fewer responsibilities than their parents had experienced.

Certainly, not every child growing up in the 1950s had an easy life. America still fought the Korean War, racial division, and the constant fear of the nuclear war with Russia.  

However, as a whole, the baby-boomer generation was growing up during one of the most prosperous periods in American history.  

Prosperity was certainly a nice thing, but prosperity also presented America with a great spiritual danger.

The Bible talks about this very thing:

Deuteronomy 8:11–14

“Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God…”

Prosperity is not wrong. However, prosperity can become dangerous when people forget where their prosperity came from.

That was beginning to happen in America.

Many young people had more money, free time, and entertainment than their parents ever had. Yet they were becoming restless.

Businesses quickly noticed this.

Teenagers were becoming their own market. Companies sold them records, clothing, magazines, and movie tickets. Young people were encouraged to develop a culture separate from their parents.

Businesses discovered that teenage rebellion could make money.

Rebellion became a product.

Music was also changing. Singers such as Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra made up the early 1950s crooner style. Rock and roll was different. It was louder, faster, and built around a strong beat.

More importantly, it belonged to the younger generation.

Rock and roll gave rebellion a sound.

Elvis Presley gave Rock and Roll the major boost it needed in teenagers.

Elvis acted differently from earlier singers. Young people loved him, while many parents and preachers were alarmed.

On September 9, 1956, Elvis appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. About 60 million people watched him.

Think about that.

One singer entered millions of American homes on the same night. Parents who would never have taken their children to one of his concerts now had him sining rock and roll inside their living rooms.

That was the power of television.

Movies also became more rebellious.

Marlon Brando played the leader of a motorcycle gang in The Wild One. James Dean became a teenage hero in Rebel Without a Cause. These movies made the angry, and defiant rebel look exciting.

The rebel was no longer always the villain, but rather he was becoming the hero.

Entertainment was also becoming more sexual. Marilyn Monroe became famous through an image built heavily around her immorlaity and sensuality.

Hollywood learned that sensuality sold.

Rebellion made money.

Sensuality made money.

Television and movies carried both into the American home.

They watched Elvis become famous. They listened to rock and roll. They saw James Dean turn rebellion into a cool thing. They watched Hollywood make sensuality glamorous.

These moral failures the American culture was making would drastically change the country for the worse.

The 1950s prepared the ground and planted the seeds for the cultural rebellion that would erupt in the 1960s.